Finnish dissertation confirms broad benefits of riding therapy

The first Finnish doctoral dissertation on riding therapy shows that it can help people with chronic lower back pain and produce wider physical and psychological benefits, Yle reports.

The study was completed at the University of Eastern Finland by visiting researcher and riding therapist Sanna Mattila-Rautiainen. It found that the movement of a horse activates the deep muscles needed to maintain balance.

A horse produces about 100 walking-like movement impulses per minute. According to Mattila-Rautiainen, people experiencing pain can regain a sense of rhythmic and symmetrical walking while sitting on a horse.

“The deep muscles that maintain balance begin to work on the horse’s back,” Mattila-Rautiainen says. “The painful, superficial muscles no longer do the work. They are activated by the rhythm.”

The 12-week study involved 22 people with chronic lower back pain. During the study, therapy sessions increased from 10 minutes to 20 minutes and finally to 30 minutes.

Mattila-Rautiainen says it was surprising that results were achieved with such short sessions. A six-month follow-up also showed that the changes had lasted.

During the therapy, participants could see themselves in a mirror while riding. Mattila-Rautiainen says they were surprised by how much their bodies were able to move.

Although pain levels varied during the intervention, the participants became more aware of the reasons for the changes. Their knowledge increased, as did their confidence in using their bodies, she says.

Riding therapy has been part of medical rehabilitation since the early 1990s, but this is the first doctoral study on the treatment in Finland.

The therapy is also used to address mental health conditions. Psychotherapist Salla Kolmakow runs a stable in Kuopio, where horses are used mainly to treat mental health and neuropsychiatric challenges.

Kolmakow says the horse’s rhythmic walk can help people relax, feel freer and calm their nervous systems. This can deepen the connection needed for conversation and bring up issues that have been buried in the mind.

Although Mattila-Rautiainen’s research was conducted from a physiotherapy perspective, Kolmakow says it provides evidence for the wider field.

“We see in practice how effective riding therapy is and how well it works. Now we also have scientific evidence of its effectiveness,” Kolmakow says.

The study also found broader effects. Participants reported a stronger self-image and greater courage.

Kolmakow says people can sometimes do things with an animal’s motivation and support that they cannot manage elsewhere. Skills first practised in the stable environment can gradually be transferred to everyday life.

Riding therapy can be provided by physiotherapists or occupational therapists, but support from Kela is available only for riding therapy delivered by professionals from those two fields. There are also significant differences between wellbeing services counties in how they purchase therapy services.